Snow Tires With Our Low-Price Guarantee

To learn more about the difference between standard, all-season tires and snow tires, check out our Facebook live video (don’t worry, the video begins sideways but only for a few seconds):

Winter Driving Tips

Owner John Manelas offered the following tips for winter driving during one of his weekly Auto Care Corner appearances on Girard at Large.

We’ve borrowed the following information about snow tires from Wikipedia:

Tire Tread

Attributes that can distinguish snow tires from “all-season” and summer tires include:

• An open, deep tread, whose void ratio between rubber and spaces between the solid rubber is comparatively high
• Shoulder blocks—specialized tread design on the outside of the tire tread to increase snow contact and friction
• A narrower aspect ratio between the diameter of the tire and the tread width to minimize resistance from the plowing effect of the tire through deeper snow
• Hydrophilic rubber compounds that improve friction on wet surfaces

Snow tires are designed to encounter many of the same conditions that summer tires encounter, as well, so they incorporate siping for wet surfaces. Wet-film conditions on hard-compacted snow or ice require studs or chains.

How Snow Tires Work

The compacted snow develops strength against slippage along a shear plane parallel to the contact area of the tire on the ground. At the same time, the bottom of the tire treads compress the snow on which they are bearing, also creating friction. The process of compacting snow within the treads requires it to be expelled in time for the tread to compact snow anew on the next rotation. The compaction/contact process works both in the direction of travel for propulsion and braking, but also laterally for cornering.

The deeper the snow that the tire rolls through, the higher the resistance encountered by the tire, as it compacts the snow it encounters and plows some of it to either side. At some point on a given angle of uphill pitch, this resistance becomes greater than the resistance to slippage achieved by the tread’s contact with the snow and the tires with power begin to slip and spin. Deeper snow means that climbing a hill without spinning the powered wheels becomes more difficult. However, the plowing/compaction effect aids in braking to the extent that it creates rolling resistance.

Tire Guide and Tips: Understanding Your Tire

For example, the number may read P225/70-R15, 89H:

P = Passenger Tire (LT = Light Truck)

• 225 = Overall width of the tire in millimeters
• 70 = Sidewall height (distance from rim to tread) as a percentage of the tread width (known as aspect ratio)
• R = Tire construction, this one is Radial (also, B = Belted Bias, D = Diagonal Bias
• 15 = Represents the size of the wheel in inches
• In this example, the tire has the number 89H. This is the weight capacity of the tire. However, in most cases, you will not see this heading on the sidewall.
• The V and Z rated tires have excellent dry pavement grip/traction but due to their soft rubber compounds, do not have a long life.
• A tread rating indicates how long a tire should last. This figure is written in small letters on the sidewall of your tire. The higher the number, the longer the tire should last. 100 is the basic treadwear rating.
• The traction rating works just like grading – ‘A’ being the best, ‘B’ is good, and ‘C’ is acceptable. This number is also found on the sidewall.
• Temperature ratings work the same – ‘A’ best, ‘B’ good, ‘C’ acceptable. If you drive your car very hard, you want a temperature rating of ‘A’ because a ‘C’ would fail faster under these conditions. Again, look for this number on the sidewall.